Dispositional optimism and recovery from coronary artery bypass surgery: The beneficial effects on physical and psychological well-being.

Abstract

The effect of dispositional optimism on recovery from coronary artery bypass surgery was examined in a group of 51 middle-aged men. Patients provided information at three points in time--(a) on the day before surgery, (b) 6-8 days postoperatively, and (c) 6 months postoperatively. Information was obtained relating to the patient's rate of physical recovery, mood, and postsurgical quality of life. Information was also gathered regarding the manner in which the patients attempted to cope with the stress of the surgery and its aftermath. As expected, dispositional optimism proved to be an important predictor of coping efforts and of surgical outcomes. More specifically, dispositional optimism (as assessed prior to surgery) correlated positively with manifestations of problem-focused coping and negatively with the use of denial. Dispositional optimism was also associated with a faster rate of physical recovery during the period of hospitalization and with a faster rate of return to normal life activities subsequent to discharge. Finally, there was a strong positive association between level of optimism and postsurgical quality of life at 6 months.

Felicidade: uma revisão

“…Observamos que grande parte das publicações não utiliza a denominação "felicidade", mas o termo "bemestar subjetivo" (Scheier et al, 1989;Khoo e Bishop, 1997;Ryan e Deci, 2000;Scheier et al, 2001;Diener e Biswas-Diener, 2002;Cloninger, 2004). Isto deriva da dificuldade em abordar-se diretamente a felicidade, de modo que muitos pesquisadores preferem mensurar o bem-estar subjetivo relatado pelas pessoas felizes.…”

“…Existem pesquisas que demonstram uma relação do otimismo com: (1) aumento no bem-estar subjetivo (Scheier et al, 1989;Khoo e Bishop, 1997); (2) elevação da auto-estima (Dunn, 1996); (3) baixo índice de depressão (Carver e Gaines, 1987;Marshall e Lang, 1990); (4) baixo índice de emoções negativas (Curbow et al, 1993;King et al, 1998); (5) alto índice de satisfação com a vida (Chang, 1998); (6) boa saúde (Scheier et al, 1999); (7) menor taxa de mortalidade associada a câncer (Schulz et al, 1996); e (8) melhor qualidade de vida (Wrosch e Scheier, 2003).…”

(Too) optimistic about optimism: The belief that optimism improves performance.

“…Research in positive psychology has identified a host of benefits of optimistic, positive thinking in social relationships, health, and happiness (Carver, Kus, & Scheier, 1994;Peterson, 2000;Scheier et al, 1989;Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000;Seligman & Schulman, 1986). …”

Relations between coping responses and optimism–pessimism in predicting anticipatory psychological distress in surgical breast cancer patients

“…Existing literature has indicated that individual differences in characteristics such as optimism and pessimism contribute to variability in levels of emotional distress in stressful situations (e.g., Chang, 2001;Scheier & Carver, 1985, 1992. For example, Scheier, Matthews, and Owens (1989) found that patients' levels of optimism inversely predicted their levels of distress before surgery, above and beyond the effects of relevant medical variables.…”